


Slow slide back into heroeing

by ScorpionGirl



Category: Young Avengers
Genre: F/F, F/M, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-28
Updated: 2014-02-01
Packaged: 2018-01-10 08:48:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 975
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1157607
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ScorpionGirl/pseuds/ScorpionGirl
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When the Patrinot came knocking Tommy called Eli and he actually came.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

He opened his phone to a picture of someone in his old costume somewhere he didn’t know. He checked the sender, Tommy, and texted back demanding what the hell this was.

“Got your attention then. Good. Some asshole’s in your old costume stealing super tech and I know its not you because I asked your Mom and your alibi checks out,” Tommy said in place of hello, calling about three seconds after Eli sent the text.

Eli gritted his teeth for a moment before responding. “Did you actually call my Mom?”

“Nah, your Grandma. So anyway, I figured you should have a heads up about the super identity theft issue before me and my new super friend heroing partner go sort it out.”

“Did you always do passive aggressive or is this new?”

Tommy paused before asking “Is it working? Because I mean, this is your identity man. Your costume. Your you. Even if you don’t wanna come back to the gig, part of retiring is making sure your super identity stays retired. Unless you passed it on. Which you didn’t. So, you’ve kind of got to help shut this guy down whether you stay retired or not.”

Eli could feel a headache starting. He’d forgotten how quickly that happened when talking to Tommy. “You’re not actually better at subtle than you are at passive aggressive. But fine, you have a point.”

“Who said I was being subtle? Anyway my friend has a teleporter friend so he can have you up here in like five minutes if you’re ready. You’re wearing pants right?” “And we’re not asking Billy because…?” “Because then he’d know where I worked. And there would be questions. Anyway, pants!” Tommy hung up the phone.

 

Eli hadn’t brought his shield, even though he’d considered it, spending the five minutes between the call and the pink haired teleporter friend showing up staring at it. He wasn’t in costume either. This wasn’t about stealthily getting him back into heroeing, no matter how clever Tommy thought he was being. This was about stopping some creep from dishonouring the costume he’d made for his grandfather’s legacy that was all. It was about grandpa, and if Tommy took in his street clothes with a flicker of disappointment they could both cover for that with an awkward introduction to his new friend, who clearly had absolutely no idea what he was doing here. He’d been Tommied, Eli sympathised.

But then there was the Thing, and Tommy’s rage turning to panic as he disappeared. And it - and it was definitely an it, it moved wrong, and they were clearly in way over their heads here, realising too late - came towards them, and it held out a glove. And Eli hesitated, because he literally could not understand what was going on until it was too late and it was pulling back its arm, emoting smugness as if what just happened had proven something about him, and vanishing. There was silence in the warehouse for a couple of seconds before David turned to him and said “We need to find your old team.”


	2. Chapter 2

By the time they catch up to them the world is ending, or at least Billy and the concept of family have had another head on collision which might as well be the same thing. Maybe he’s not being fair but it’s hard to be fair sometimes after everything that’s happened. David is distinctly unimpressed that they weren’t even worried about Tommy until the two of them showed up which wins him points with Eli, and proceeds to have a repetitive argument about what exactly does David think they should have done when half the time Tommy never answers the phone and its not like they could have gone home to check on him until Eli loses patience and says quietly “You should have called me. So I could have gone and checked things out, or at least asked some of our people back in the city to do it if I couldn’t get up there.” It’s a little gratifying that Teddy looks ashamed there and Kate and Billy won’t meet his eyes. “To be fair,” Kate says. “When was the last time you picked up the phone? Its not like we could count on you to answer.”

“OK,” America says, clearly out of patience with the whole thing. “I’m sure you’ve got all sorts things that you need to cry out together but you can do that on the ship.” And she looks at Eli and David like she assumes they’re coming and, well, when your friends are in this much trouble you have to come, even if it is the last thing in the world you wanted or feel you have a right to. So all he says is “Can you get me my shield?” and Billy nods and the next thing he knows the cool, worn metal’s in his hands again, the familiar weight of it, and he tells himself not to get used to feeling like something missing’s come home again because the second this is over, that they’ve found Tommy and put down the thing masquerading as Teddy’s mom, he’s going back into retirement.

Later Kate asks him if he's planning to hero in his jeans and he bites back the urge to tell her that she looks like an escapee from the seventies in her new costume and instead just says that yeah, yeah he is. Teddy smiles at him when he says that, like its somehow significant, good significant, and Eli has no idea what he thinks it even means but he isn't asking. Teddy wants it back, all of it, its the most obvious thing in the world, and Eli doesn't want to encourage that because its not happening. He's just here for his friends and then he's going home.

 


End file.
